Arab-EU leaders agree on united efforts to tackle common challenges

European Council President Donald Tusk described the first-ever EU-Arab summit in Sharm El-Sheikh as a “new chapter of cooperation” between the Arab world and Europe.

Addressing a joint press conference with Egypt President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi at the conclusion of the two-day summit on Monday, Tusk said the two regions have no alternative but to work together on the same challenges they are grappling with, including terrorism, climate change and ensuring sustainable growth.

Around 40 EU and Arab leaders held the last day of their two-day summit in the Egyptian Red Sea resort stressing how their challenges were interlinked, from migration to terrorism.

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman, who led the Kingdom’s delegation to the summit, held separate bilateral talks with a number of leaders who included Kuwait Emir Sheikh Sabah Al-Sabah, King of Bahrain Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades, Prime Minister of Belgium Charles Michel, Prime Minister of Czech Republic Andrej Babiš.

A declaration issued at the end of the summit said the leaders agreed to further strengthen cooperation toward security, conflict resolution and socio-economic development throughout the region.

“We reaffirmed our common positions on the Middle East Peace Process, including on the status of Jerusalem, and on the illegality under international law of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. We reiterated our commitment to reaching a two-state solution on the basis of all relevant UN resolutions, as the only realistic way to end the occupation,” said the Sharm El-Sheikh Declaration.

On Yemen, the declaration welcomed the Stockholm agreement in particular the ceasefire in Hodeida